Microsoft mobile back-up scheme gets full launch
Microsoft’s mobile device back-up system, a rival to Apple’s MobileMe, is now available for public use, though it’s still in beta testing. Those who’ve tried it say it’s useful, if somewhat limited and glitchy at this stage.
As we noted in February, MyPhone is designed to back-up contacts, messages, photos and other phone data, including documents and multimedia files. It works on all devices running Windows Media 6.0 and later.
The free service includes up to 200MB of storage, which isn’t bad, though does rule out having more than some token multimedia clips. The service allows users to choose exactly what data they back-up, which is necessary as if the 200MB limit is hit it apparently simply cuts off copying any more files.
Users can multiple devices on the same account with no confusion about which files come from which handset. The backed-up data can be access through a website from any PC and can be viewed without the need to restore it to a phone.
One downside is that the automatic scheduling only allows daily or weekly back-ups, though more frequent back-ups can be carried out manually. (Automated back-ups take place between 11pm and 5am to reduce the chance of clashing with the phone being used.) The system is very much designed as a safety net rather than guaranteeing comprehensive up-to-the-minute backups.
The Register notes some initial problems with the service. When backing up a phone which was connected to a network drive, My Phone mistakenly recognized the drive as a phone storage card and attempted to back-up its contents. Meanwhile, the default settings do not back up any data such as contact numbers which is stored on a SIM card.
It appears the scheme isn’t just Microsoft acting out of the goodness of its heart. It hopes the features will make Windows Mobile more attractive to non-business users who.
Related Posts:
August 22nd, 2009
thanks for sharing…